Steven's "Who?"'s hilarious "press release" reminds me of a similar such release circulated to all Branch offices in the world in 1984, demanding the resignation of the Governing Body and naming a "shadow" Body headed up by Michael Jackson, Jim Penton, the May Brothers from Ireland, Raymond Franz and myself. Dead give-aways: The $144,000 fines, the overall breadth of the claim, internationally, and the fact that the Latrobe Magistrate's Court in Gippsland, Victoria, does not have a sitting on September 13. Also the Magistrate's Court does not have jurisdiction or standing to bring forward such a claim. That would be orginated by the prosecutor. in the case of prosecution on the crimnal side - which this isn't - or by private parties such as Mr. "Unthank" (were he actually to exist) on the civil side ("small claims") - which this also obviously isn't. Nice try, Steve, but no cigar!
Gary Botting
JoinedPosts by Gary Botting
-
243
Victoria, Australia: Steven Unthank's Press Release: JW's Hierarchy Formally Charged Today With Child Abuse
by AndersonsInfo injehovah's witnesses hierarchy charged.
immediate press release: 26 july 2011. link to this press release: http://wp.me/p1g1hc-4o.
worldwide church hierarchy charged with child abuse.
-
-
-
21
Does the Governing Body (or past presidents) members have (or had to) have body guards?
by Joliette inwas watching a biography on the history channel about presidental securities and secrets, how the president is guarded just in case of an attack, an assaination attempt, etc.
it got me to thinking about if any of the past or current gb members (or wt presidents) have ever had any death threats?
do they have a specific plan for a gb member when they visit a city or country?
-
-
Gary Botting
Glad to be here. I grew up without a father (he was killed in the war when I was two months old), and my mother became a JW in 1948, believing that she would be reunited with her husband after the Resurrection. A succession of up-and-coming WT leaders took me under their wing in various ways, so I never lacked for male role models, all pushing me towards pioneering. Some of these (Carey Barbour, Leo Greenlees) became members of the Governing Body; others (Colin Quakenbush) became writers for the Society, or martyrs cum district servants (Laurier Saumur), or administrators (Don Mills), or lawyers (Glen How).
Glen How's wife Joan was my mother's best friend, and Glen in particular was a mentor, asking me to volunteer with him in the public relations department of assemblies in Toronto, Ottawa and London, England. Later, he encouraged me to study law; which eventually I did (see www.garybotting.com). However, after the publication of The Orwellian World of Jehovah's Witnesses in 1984, Glen and I naturally had a falling out. In 1985, someone asked him point blank, "What is the Society going to do about Gary and Heather Botting?" Glen replied, "Nothing!"
Good answer!
One of my first clients was suing the Society in Calgary, Alberta; so I went up against Glen. When I showed up, he was livid!
As usual Glen had larded the gallery of the courtroom with JWs - a favourite strategy. In Victoria, B.C. the same thing happened at the arson trial of the disgruntled son of a JW who with two friends had shoved a Molotov cocktail through the letterbox at the Kingdom Hall. The defense counsel (my principal, Doug Christie) was concerned that prosecution witnesses might hear the evidence of other Crown witnesses, so made the standard request for exclusion of witnesses.
"Yes," said the judge. "All witnesses must leave the courtroom until they are called."
A couple of the Witnesses got up, and, like sheep, all the others followed. Before Glen realized what was going on, the courtroom was virtually empty!
Perhaps they are still awaiting the Call....
-
21
Does the Governing Body (or past presidents) members have (or had to) have body guards?
by Joliette inwas watching a biography on the history channel about presidental securities and secrets, how the president is guarded just in case of an attack, an assaination attempt, etc.
it got me to thinking about if any of the past or current gb members (or wt presidents) have ever had any death threats?
do they have a specific plan for a gb member when they visit a city or country?
-
-
Gary Botting
In my several encounters with Nathan H. Knorr, first as a volunteer at the 1955 and 1958 conventions in New York, the 1960 convention in London, England (where I tried to interview him as a volunteer with the PR department), and again in 1962 in Hong Kong (by then I was a secular journalist with the South China Morning Post, trying to get the "inside" scoop), "Brother" Knorr always had bodyguards present, as was alluded to in The Orwellian World of Jehovah's Witnesses. When I tried to interview Knorr I was given the brush-off (almost literally) by the heavies, not by Knorr himself. Both in England and Hong Kong, the bodyguards practically stiff-armed their way down the stairs and down the hall, not allowing any questions whatsoever. Because I wanted to talk to someone at or close to the "top", in London in 1960 I settled for an interview (over Chinese dinner with him and several special pioneers) with Vice President Fred Franz, who had no bodyguards and was quite approachable. After The Orwellian World was released in July 1984, I visited Bethel and asked to see then Fred Franz, as has been chronicled elsewhere. He met me in the lobby where, quite incidentally, there was a guard present. On October 2, 1984, I returned to New York to participate in a protest against the governing body, since Armageddon had not come with a 70-year generation of 1914 ("this generation will by no means pass away..."). This time I tried to interview Schroeder, who surrounded himself with bodyguards. I tripped one of the guards, inadvertently, allowing me to walk side by side with Schroeder from one building to the next, and questioned him about disfellowshipping. This was all captured by several television cameras. I was pointedly denied access at the factory, the bodyguards having reasserted themselves at the door. The police were called, of course, and I had a brief interview with them, explaining that our protest was peaceful. As we were talking, the Bethelites left to go to dinner, walking briskly in double file at the end of the block.
"There goes the neighbourhood," I said to the cops, pointing to the retreating line of Bethelites.
The black cop chuckled.
"Why did the Bethelites cross the road?" I challenged.
The white cop shrugged. "I dunno. Why?"
"Because they was a-chicken!"